Breaking the bonds!

 Disclaimer - This is a work of fiction. This is exclusively work  of my creative brain :D . So please provide me your valuable feedback.


*This post is written for 'Sony TV- Love Marriage or Arranged Marriage Contest' on Indiblogger. 
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Image has been taken from Google Images !!

 I lay still on the bed observing the motion of the ceiling fan as the clock struck 10. Rashmi, my elder sister, senior to me by 2 years sat next to me as my focus drifted towards the Television set which was playing some daily soap.

"My heart seems to like you so much that I am starting to lose myself. I am afraid of surrendering myself to this divine master called love,” The actor uttered these dialogues to his ravishing co-actress. 

"Bullshit!," I said as I  grabbed the remote from Di and changed the TV Channel.

"Why did you change the channel, Simki?," Di 's tone was so stale. Her face seemed bland and she appeared wan.

"I just hate that thing called love," I retorted.

"Such flowery dialogues may amuse you but I don't like such TV serials," I said with a shade of seriousness.

Di smiled and said," My dear Simki, love is a special feeling and you will know when you fall in love baby," She ruffled my dark hair.

“Love is a not my cup of tea. I can never fall in love Di,” I replied back.

Rashmi Di had totally changed after she came back to Ambala from Delhi. Our parents had sent her to Delhi for her Engineering studies. They loved her like crazy. I still remember how crazy we both used to get during our vacations. Being sisters, we discussed all our personal problems with each other. She was my guide and more than that, a trusted confidante.

"You talk as if you have experienced this feeling," I winked at her.

"Oh shut up, Simki!" She retorted.

"Tell me na Didi..," I pestered her. I knew that emotional blackmailing and pestering are the only ways to retrieve her deep dark secrets from her own mouth. All that I desired was to make fun of my beloved elder sister who was taciturn by nature.

"Yes, I love someone," She finally confessed. The haunting silence invoked for two minutes. I remained numb for a while as if couldn't believe my ears.

"His name is Karthik and I can't dream a life without him," Her eyes turned moist and voice wavering. I witnessed tears rolling down her soft cheeks. She had the most angelic eyes which was adorned by her arched charcoal dark eyebrows which framed her face. I never even dreamt of letting tears invade her gorgeous face. I got up in a jiffy and wiped the tears away from her eyes.

"Do our parents know this?," I held my arms around her shoulder to comfort her.

"No..Probably Papa won’t accept that," She said.

"Where is he from? Is he a Jatt?," I asked her curiously.

"No. Karthik is a Tamilian," Di said.

I remained stunned for a moment. I felt a chill down my spine as I heard each and every word my sister asserted. I knew that Papa would favour only a Jatt man from Haryana and could realize that difficult times are not far from arrival.

"If only love was like us, it would have understood religion and caste. But Alas! Love is just a feeling, an emotion to be exact. It’s beyond race, colour and languages,” She helplessly cited.

"But Di, Papa always wanted you to get married to the Sarpanch's son, studying MBA from Mumbai?," I said.

"I am scared Simki," She sobbed.

"Oh Di..Don’t cry..," I soothed and hugged her tightly so that she could feel better.

"You should talk to Papa," I suggested. "Yes...I will,” She said in dismay. And we left for Papa's room.

"Papa..," Papa woke up to my voice. He was resting on his bed after the day’s work.  He had a broad shoulder and a perfect physique. His Craggy face and his thick moustaches could frighten anyone. As always, I handed him the glass of milk which I had prepared for him.

"So my dear angels how was your day?," He smiled while sipping milk.

"Papa...I got to tell you something important," Rashmi Didi's voice was trembling. She was visibly scared. He drank the milk and wiped the remnants from his lips.

"Okay but before that . . .I have a proposal for you from the Sarpanch. They want you to get married to their son Vikrant,"   He said with his coarse voice.

Her cleared his throat and continued,"Oh I forgot...he is doing some MBC from Mumbai,"

"Its MBA, Papa..," I corrected him.

"They would be visiting us this weekend...get ready," He smiled and caressed her alluring cheeks. Tears flowed down from her eyes as he uttered those words.

"Papa, I can never do that ...," She said as she wept.

"What do you mean?," He raised his voice to an even higher pitch.

"Papa.I...I love someone and want to spent my life him," She admitted as I held her shivering hand. Meanwhile mother arrived from the kitchen as she heard Papa shouting at the peak of his voice.

"What if we don't agree?," Papa asked.

"I can't think of a life without him. I want to marry him," She said.

My mother rushed towards us and slapped Di on her cheeks. "How dare you say this?," She slapped her hard once again.

Papa was visibly infuriated by Didi’s gestures and I knew there was no use of arguing with him.

"Didi...Our parents love you.Please realize that whatever they do,they do  it for our happiness" I pleaded

"Learn from her.She is younger to you but still mature and grown up," Papa said pointing towards me. "Trust me...Vikrant will treat you like a queen," Papa tried to console her.

"No Papa...I would rather prefer being a pauper with my love than being a queen at a stranger's castle," She said. "No.You are getting married to Vikrant and it’s done," Papa declared strictly.

I tried wiping Rashmi Di's tears away but consoling was of no use.

"Papa...How can you expect me to live with a person whom I have not seen, not spoken to. It’s a matter of choice and life. Marriage is a bond. Why don't you understand? I would curse and blame you if my marriage with Vikrant fails. I love you, so please understand my plight. I love him equally as you both love me. I would live a happy life with him Papa,"

 She continued."I know how much you and Ma love me but I am sure he will make me feel like a princess and give me the ultimate joy of my life," She spoke to which our parents listened with a straight face.

"I am not convinced..," Papa said. 

"If I can't marry Karthik then I can't marry anyone. I would rather die than marrying anyone other than my love," She said with her voice pitched up.

"Rashmi..," Mother got vexed for once.

Papa thought for a moment. “Nothing is greater than my daughter's happiness, not even the taunts of my own community,” He said after 10 minutes.

Mother was perplexed as she heard those words from her husband.

"Papa...What...are you serious?," I asked him. "Yes Simki!," He said. 

"I hope the boy's parents are ok with this...," He said and rested on his bed.

"Papa..I love you so much," Rashmi Didi hugged him but Papa didn’t responded in return.

 “You should know that a good child is the one who obeys her/his parents words. We know you very well...And perhaps this love has blinded you and you can’t judge between love and family," He said. “But remember that after you get married, this home will be closed forever for you. You won't visit us for any kind of help..," He announced.

"This is not fair Papa," She said. 

"Didi.Shut up...Papa is upset...Don’t mess up things," I urged her to remain silent. As promised, Papa got his elder daughter get married to the guy whom she loved. They seeked blessings from Papa, but he refused to bless them. His anger was clearly visible through his gestures. That was the last day when my parents and Didi faced each other. After that day, they never met. Papa had lots of faith in me. He once promised the Sarpanch to get Rashmi Di married to his son Vikrant. His heart was full of grief as he could not stick to his words. I have never supported love and it was not my cup of tea. I was mature enough to live a life peacefully with a stranger and it's when I got the biggest shock of my life. 

"Simki beta...Will you marry Vikrant?," Papa asked me.

"Papa..I will. I won't let you down," I said. I respected him and I knew his importance in my life. He has put all his trust in me and I wanted to held his head up high. Two months later, I tied knots with Vikrant, the guy whom I had not seen or met before in my life. Initially, it took me some time to learn Vikrant. He was a sweet man who admired me. There were some issues between me and Vikrant in the beginning which we would sort it out by ourselves but at times, our elder’s presence was essential to make sure that everything between us was good. Gradually, I started loving his company and fell in love with my husband. He never ceased to make me feel special and our life sailed smoothly. Simran, our baby girl filled our life with joys and strengthen our relationship. 

Parents play a crucial role in an individual’s life. Their role is so critical that we often end up needing their assistance in our life. As they say that marriage is not a bond between two individuals, it is a bond between two families. I realized that my sister had committed the biggest mistake of her life by marrying someone whom she loved. I won't regret that she refused to marry Vikrant. If she had said yes to Vikrant's proposal, then I would not have discovered a wonderful person in the form of my husband. Baby Simran soon grew up and at the age of 5, we got her admitted to one of the finest schools in Gurgaon. Although my life was in bliss but the memories of my sister never left my mind. I had never met her or spoken to her since last 6 years. 

It was PTA meeting at my daughter Simran's school where I met my long lost sister again.

"Mummy...meet my teacher..Rashmi maa'm ," My daughter took me to her teacher. I was flabbergasted and upset to see the pathetic state of my sister. She was working as a teacher in 'Presentation High School'.

"Didi...," I said as a new ray of happiness grew within me. "Where were you Didi?. We missed you," I hugged my sister tightly.

"How are you Simki?," My sister spoke. "I am fine Didi," I said with a smile. She was wearing a maroon colored cotton saree and looked very pale along with dark circles around her once alluring eyes. "How is life? Is everything fine?," I asked her worriedly.

"It’s ok," She replied with a straight face. "You sound low...Tell me the truth," I requested her to which she wept.

"You and Papa were right that day. I should have listened to you guys. Love hurts," She cried. "What happened?," I asked her.

"He betrayed me leaving behind our two kids. Love seems sweet at the beginning, but the harsh truth is that love eventually agonizes. I was not destined to be together with him. We lived together happily until recession struck and he lost his job. We had nothing to fend for and it was then when he started physically abusing me and my children," She cried. "I fell for a guy whom I thought would treat me like a princess throughout our marriage. I divorced him and been living alone with my two kids," She wiped her tears.

I soon took her to our home where she met our parents. Our parents were shocked to see her in such state. They embraced her and her two kids and they now lived together with us.

Image taken from Google Images

Marriage is like a feature film. An actor and an actress alone can never make a movie successful. To make it a box-office hit, we need the directors, producers and other support resources who equally contribute. Same applies for arranged marriage, to make a marriage successful; we need our parents and relatives whose blessings strengthen our bond. The drawback of love marriage is that when love drains out of your life, it will leave behind scars which will haunt you throughout your life as you should know that each indecision brings its own delays and days are lost lamenting over the lost days. So I advice people to learn from my sisters life. An incorrect decision of choosing a wrong life partner can also change your life.

Life without a companion is like a rudderless boat. I am not against love marriages but through this story of mine, I want to convey the message of marrying someone whom you believe would care for you. Knowing a person for a long time is actually a good thing but it’s saddening when we see our loved one betray us. When the love ceases, nothing remains except hatred and disappointment. My sister is a good example of how a marriage shouldn't be. Approach someone who will respect and care you rather than the one who displays fake and timely affection. Thanks a lot for hearing my story.  I wish you all the luck for your future.

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